HARARE – President Emmerson Mnangagwa has signed into law a contentious new law requiring motorists to purchase a radio licence before they can renew their vehicle licences or buy car insurance, a move expected to generate tens of millions of dollars annually for the cash-strapped Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC).

Mnangagwa’s assent to the Broadcasting Amendment Act (No 2 of 2025) was announced in a notice published in the Government Gazette on May 23.

Motorists will pay $23 per quarter or $92 annually under the law which has come under heavy criticism by the opposition and motorists.

Motorists must present a valid ZBC radio licence or exemption certificate when applying for vehicle registration, insurance, or licence disc renewal.

Estimates by the Zimbabwe National Roads Administration (ZINARA) say Zimbabwe has 1,2 million vehicles but an average 800,000 renew their licences annually. ZBC would be guaranteed just over $73 million per year.

The law has drawn sharp criticism from motorists and opposition groups, who accuse the ZBC of serving as a propaganda mouthpiece for Zanu PF. Critics say the fees being demanded are too high.

Nelson Chamisa, the former leader of the main opposition CCC said the new law was “too draconian, anti-citizens and outrightly heartless.”

He wrote on X, formerly Twitter: “So a person who owns a car pays ZINARA, ZBC, insurance and toll fees, how are people supposed to survive? When shall all this end?

“Citizens are being pauperized left, right and centre, why does the citizenry of this country deserve so uncaring and heartless a leadership? What are people supposed to do with all this cruel taxation? Why must I pay for a service I don’t use? Why should I pay for partisan propaganda, where I am attacked in person and demonised from dawn to dusk?”

Vehicle owner Lazarus Bhebhe said the new requirement is “an unreasonable burden on the average motorist.”

“My radio, like many in vehicles imported from Japan, can’t even receive a signal from local stations,” he said.

Another motorist Lucky Makomo weighed in: “It’s absurd to pay for a service we can’t use.”

ZBC has previously launched aggressive enforcement campaigns demanding licence fees even from car owners whose radios are either non-functional or incompatible with local broadcasting frequencies. The broadcaster has long relied on licence fees and state bailouts amid its failure to commercialise its monopoly.

ZBC’s bias in favour of Zanu PF has been consistently cited by international observer missions monitoring Zimbabwe’s elections, fuelling calls for reform.